''Foreign Affair'' is the seventh solo studio album by

Tina Turner Tina Turner (born Anna Mae Bullock; November 26, 1939 – May 24, 2023) was a singer, songwriter, actress, and author. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Rock 'n' Roll", her vocal prowess, raspy voice, and electrifyin ...

, released on September 18, 1989, through

Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007), and simply known as Capitol, is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-base ...

. It was Turner's third album release after her massively successful comeback five years earlier with ''

Private Dancer ''Private Dancer'' is the fifth solo studio album by singer Tina Turner. It was released on May 29, 1984, by Capitol Records and was her first album released by the label. After a challenging start to her solo career after divorcing Ike Turner, ...

'' and her third and last album with the label. Although the album was not a major success in Turner's native United States, it was a huge international hit, especially in Europe. The album reached number one on the

UK Albums Chart The Official Albums Chart is the United Kingdom's industry-recognised national record chart for album, albums. Entries are ranked by sales and audio streaming. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the O ...

, her first number one album there.

Dan Hartman Daniel Earl Hartman (December 8, 1950 – March 22, 1994) was an American pop rock musician, multi-instrumentalist, producer, singer, and songwriter and original frontman for several bands, including the Soploids, Mak and the Turnarounds, Our Wri ...

produced most of the tracks on the album, including the hit single "

The Best Best or The Best may refer to: People * Best (surname), people with the surname Best * Best (footballer, born 1968), retired Portuguese footballer Companies and organizations * Best & Co., an 1879–1971 clothing chain * Best Lock Corporatio ...

", which has gone on to become one of Turner's signature songs.

Composition

''Foreign Affair'' falls under the adult contemporary genre and features a diverse range of musical styles, from pop-rock anthems ("The Best", "I Don't Wanna Lose You") to bluesy tracks ("Undercover Agent for the Blues") and power ballads ("Be Tender With Me Baby"). The album features collaborations with prominent musicians, including saxophone solos by

Gary Barnacle Gary Barnacle (born 1959) is an English saxophonist, flautist, brass instrument arranger, composer, and producer. Barnacle is primarily noted for his session work and live work, including various Prince's Trust concerts at Wembley Arena, th ...

on at least three tracks and guitar work by

Dire Straits Dire Straits were a British rock band formed in London in 1977 by Mark Knopfler (lead vocals, lead guitar), David Knopfler (rhythm guitar, backing vocals), John Illsley (bass guitar, backing vocals) and Pick Withers (drums, percussion). Th ...

frontman

Mark Knopfler Mark Freuder Knopfler OBE (born 12 August 1949) is a British musician. He was the lead guitarist, singer and songwriter of the rock band Dire Straits from 1977 to 1995, and he is the one of the two members who stayed during the band's existence ...

, who co-wrote Turner's hit "

", on the title track.

Commercial performance

While ''Foreign Affair'' did not perform as well as Turner's previous albums ''

'' and ''

Break Every Rule ''Break Every Rule'' is the sixth solo studio album by Tina Turner. It was released on September 8, 1986, through Capitol Records. It was the follow-up to Turner's globally successful comeback album, ''Private Dancer'', released two years earlie ...

'' in the US, where it failed to crack the Top 30 in the ''Billboard'' 200, it was a worldwide hit, selling over six million copies. In the UK alone the album sold over 1.5 million copies entering the UK Albums Chart at number one (Turner's first album to do so there) and staying in Top 100 for a year and a half. The album also reached number one in numerous other countries including Germany and Sweden and topped the overall European Chart for four weeks. In 2021, ''Foreign Affair'' was released as a box set, which includes a previously unreleased demo of "The Best".

Single releases

Six tracks from the album were released as singles, most of which became hits in various parts of Europe and, to a lesser extent, in the US. "

" (US No. 15; UK No. 5) was released as the first single propelling the sales of the album. This was followed by " I Don't Wanna Lose You" (UK No. 8), which was released in Europe only. The album's third single (second in the US) was the opening track, "

Steamy Windows "Steamy Windows" is a song by American-Swiss singer Tina Turner. It was included on Turner's seventh studio album, '' Foreign Affair'' (1989), and released as the album's second single in November 1989. In the United Kingdom, it was instead issue ...

" (US. No. 39; UK No. 13), which earned Turner a

Grammy The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious a ...

nomination. Three additional singles released in various territories were the title track "

Foreign Affair ''Foreign Affair'' is the seventh solo studio album by Tina Turner, released on September 18, 1989, through Capitol Records. It was Turner's third album release after her massively successful comeback five years earlier with ''Private Dancer'' ...

" (Continental Europe only), the ballad "

Look Me in the Heart "Look Me in the Heart" is a song by recording artist Tina Turner. It was written by Billy Steinberg and Tom Kelly and produced by Dan Hartman for Turner's seventh solo studio album, '' Foreign Affair'' (1989). Released as a single in March 1990, ...

" (No. 8 on the US Adult Contemporary chart; UK No. 31) and the rock ballad "

Be Tender with Me Baby "Be Tender with Me Baby" is a song by recording artist Tina Turner. Written by Albert Hammond and Holly Knight and produced by Dan Hartman, it was released as a single from Turner's seventh solo studio album, '' Foreign Affair'' (1989), in Octobe ...

" (UK No. 28).

Track listing

Notes * signifies additional producer * signifies remix * signifies post-production and remix

Personnel

Musicians *

– lead vocals (all tracks), backing vocals (3, 7, 8, 10), arrangements (2, 8) *

– electric piano (1, 3, 4),

organ Organ and organs may refer to: Biology * Organ (biology), a group of tissues organized to serve a common function * Organ system, a collection of organs that function together to carry out specific functions within the body. Musical instruments ...

(1, 4), keyboards (2, 3, 11), acoustic guitar (2, 6, 8, 11), backing vocals (2, 5), percussion programming (5),

Moog bass The Moog Taurus is a foot-operated analog synthesizer designed and manufactured by Moog Music. It was originally conceived as a part of the Constellation series of synthesizers. The initial Taurus I was manufactured from 1975 to 1981; a less pop ...

(11), drum programming (11) *

Jeff Bova Jeff Bova (born Jeffrey Bova in 1953) is an American musician. He has been active in the music industry since the mid-1970s, contributing to recordings by significant mainstream artists like Celine Dion, Michael Jackson, Blondie, Eric Clapton, ...

– horn section (1, 4, 5), synth bass (3), organ (4), strings (5) * Phil Ashley – keyboards (2, 7), bass pulse (2), organ (6), synthesizers (6), strings (6, 7, 8), acoustic piano (8),

flute The flute is a member of a family of musical instruments in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, producing sound with a vibrating column of air. Flutes produce sound when the player's air flows across an opening. In th ...

(8) * Elliot Lewis – additional keyboards (2, 8), strings (2, 8), flute (11) *

Philippe Saisse Philippe Saisse (; born 1957) is a French jazz musician, composer, record producer, and arranger. Career He was born in Marseille and raised in Paris. After studying at the Paris Conservatory he won a scholarship to the Berklee College of Music. ...

– additional keyboards (2, 3, 6, 8), slap bass (3), flute solo (5), keyboard mallet and chimes (7) *

Rupert Hine Rupert Neville Hine (21 September 1947 – 4 June 2020) was an English record producer and musician. He produced albums for artists including Rush, Kevin Ayers, Tina Turner, Howard Jones, Saga, the Fixx, Bob Geldof, Thompson Twins, Stevie Nic ...

– keyboards (9), bass (9), drum programming (9), backing vocals (9) *

Nick Glennie-Smith Nickolas Glennie-Smith is an English film score composer, Conducting, conductor, and musician who is a frequent collaborator with Hans Zimmer, contributing to scores including ''The Rock (film), The Rock'' (nominated for the Academy Awards, Acad ...

– keyboards (10, 12), strings (10, 12), synth bass (12), drum programming (12),

bell tree A bell tree, also known as tree bellsBeck, John. ''Encyclopedia of Percussion.'' Taylor and Francis, 1995. or Chinese bell tree (often confused with the mark tree), is a percussion instrument, consisting of vertically nested inverted metal bow ...

(12) * Casey Young – keyboards (10) * Greg Mathieson – synth bass (10) * Eddie Martinez – rhythm guitar (1, 3, 4), all guitars (5) * Neil Taylor – slide guitar (1), guitar solo (1) *

Tony Joe White Tony Joe White (July 23, 1943 – October 24, 2018), nicknamed the Swamp Fox, was an American singer-songwriter and guitarist, best known for his 1969 hit " Polk Salad Annie" and for "Rainy Night in Georgia", which he wrote but which was first ...

– lead guitar (1, 3, 4, 12), rhythm guitar (1, 3, 4, 12),

harmonica The harmonica, also known as a French harp or mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used worldwide in many musical genres, notably in blues, American folk music, classical music, jazz, country, and rock. The many types of harmonica incl ...

(1, 3), synth bass (1, 4) * Gene Black – rhythm guitar (2, 7, 8), lead guitar (6, 7), guitar solo (6), guitar (10) * James Ralston – rhythm guitar (2, 6, 7, 8), guitar (10) *

Pat Thrall Patrick Thrall is an American rock guitarist. Thrall has worked with former Deep Purple bassist Glenn Hughes on the Hughes/Thrall project. Discography Cookin Mama * ''New Day'' (guitar, vocals, percussion; 1972) Stomu Yamashta * Go (guita ...

– guitar solo (2), additional lead guitar fills (6),

slide guitar Slide guitar is a technique for playing the guitar that is often used in blues music. It involves playing a guitar while holding a hard object (a slide) against the strings, creating the opportunity for glissando effects and deep vibratos that ...

(8), electric guitar (11) *

Phil Palmer Philip John Palmer (born 9 September 1952) is a British rock sideman and session guitarist who has toured, recorded, and worked with numerous artists. He is best known for his work with Eric Clapton and Dire Straits. Biography Palmer grew up ...

– guitars (9) *

– guitars (12) *

Carmine Rojas Carmine Rojas (born February 14, 1953) is an American bass guitarist, musical director and composer. His musical styles include rock, R&B, funk, and jazz. Music career Early years, as sideman Born in Brooklyn, Rojas toured the world with David ...

– bass guitar (1, 4, 5) *

T. M. Stevens Thomas Michael Stevens (July 28, 1951 – March 10, 2024) was an American bass guitarist from New York City. He recorded and toured with an array of rock, R&B, and pop acts as a session musician and also worked as a solo performer. Career Earl ...

– bass guitar (2, 3, 6, 7, 8, 11) * J. T. Lewis – drums (1, 3, 4, 5) * Art Wood – drums (2, 6, 7, 8) *

Geoff Dugmore The Europeans were a British new wave group formed in 1981 and disbanded in 1985. They released three albums, none of which achieved much in terms of chart position. In 1989, their former keyboard player and co-lead vocalist Steve Hogarth joi ...

– drums (10) * Danny Cummings – percussion (3, 4, 7),

shaker Shaker or Shakers may refer to: Religious groups * Shakers, a historically significant Christian sect * Indian Shakers, a smaller Christian denomination Objects and instruments * Shaker (musical instrument), an indirect struck idiophone * Cock ...

(5),

conga The conga, also known as tumbadora, is a tall, narrow, single-headed drum from Cuba. Congas are staved like barrels and classified into three types: quinto (lead drum, highest), tres dos or tres golpes (middle), and tumba or salidor (lowest ...

s (7) *

Albert Hammond Albert Louis Hammond Order of the British Empire, OBE (born 18 May 1944) is a Gibraltarians, Gibraltarian singer, songwriter and record producer. A prolific songwriter, he also collaborated with other songwriters such as Mike Hazlewood, John B ...

– shaker (10), backing vocals (10) *

– all saxophones (1, 12), saxophone solo (10) *

Edgar Winter Edgar Holland Winter (born December 28, 1946) is an American multi-instrumentalist, working as a vocalist along with playing keyboards, saxophone, and percussion. His success peaked in the 1970s with his band the Edgar Winter Group and their pop ...

– saxophone solo (2) *

Tim Cappello Tim Cappello (born May 3, 1955), also credited as Timmy Cappello, is an American multi-instrumentalist, composer, and vocalist. He is primarily known for his saxophone work supporting Tina Turner in the 1980s and '90s, as well as for his musical ...

– saxophone solo (5, 8) * Roger Davies – arrangements (5) *

Lance Ellington Lance Ellington (born 22 June 1957) is an English singer, songwriter and actor. Ellington, the only son of the band leader Ray Ellington, specialises in swing and big ballads. He has worked with many artists including Sting, George Michael, ...

– backing vocals (2, 3, 5, 7, 8, 11) *

Tessa Niles Tessa Margaret Niles ( ''née'' Webb; born 27 January 1961) is an English singer, best known as a backing singer for a wide variety of contemporary artists. She began her professional singing career in 1979. Early life and career Niles began h ...

– backing vocals (2, 3, 5–8, 11) * David Munday – backing vocals (9) * Sandy Stewart – backing vocals (9) *

Holly Knight Holly Knight (born 1956) is an American songwriter, musician, and singer. She was a member of the 1980s pop rock groups Spider and Device, and wrote or co-wrote several hit singles for other artists, such as " Rag Doll", " Obsession", " Love Is ...

– backing vocals (10) *

Graham Lyle Graham Hamilton Lyle (born 11 March 1944, in Bellshill, Lanarkshire, Scotland) is a Scottish singer-songwriter, guitarist and producer. Between 1970 and 1997, he co-wrote 18 British Top 40 hits, 9 ''Billboard'' Hot 100 entries, 4 US Country No ...

– backing vocals (10) Production * Dan Hartman – producer (1–8, 11) * Tina Turner – executive producer, producer (2, 8) * Rupert Hine – producer (9) * Roger Davies – executive producer, producer (10, 12) * Albert Hammond – producer (10) * Graham Lyle – producer (10) * Tony Joe White – producer (12) Technical *

Chris Lord-Alge Chris Lord-Alge is an American mix engineer. He is the brother of both Tom Lord-Alge and Jeff Lord-Alge, both of whom are also audio engineers. Chris and Tom are known for their abundant use of dynamic range compression for molding mixes that ...

– recording engineer (1–8, 11), mixing (all tracks) * Andrew Scarth – recording engineer (9) * Mike Ging – recording engineer (10, 12) * Tommy Vicari – recording engineer (10) * Nick Froome – recording engineer (12) * Vincent Frerebeau – additional engineer * John Lee – additional engineer * Dave O'Donnell – additional engineer * James Allen-Jones – assistant engineer *

Darren Allison Darren Allison (born May 1968, Ashington, Northumberland, England) is an English record producer, musician, and audio engineer, best known for his production work with artists such as Spiritualized,Kempster, Chris "Studio secrets of the sta ...

– assistant engineer * Lee Curle – assistant engineer * Tim Leitner – assistant engineer * Paul Logus – assistant engineer * Ray Pyle – assistant engineer * David Scott – assistant engineer * Elliot Singerman – assistant engineer *

Bob Ludwig Robert Carl Ludwig (born December 11, 1944), is a retired American mastering engineer. He mastered recordings on all the major recording formats for all the major record labels, and on projects by more than 1,300 artists, including Led Zeppeli ...

– mastering Studios * Overdubs recorded at Multi-Level (Westport, Connecticut); The Power Station (New York, New York); Lion Share Recording (Los Angeles, California); E-Zee Studios (London, UK);

Mayfair Studios Mayfair Recording Studios was a recording studio in London, England, which was in operation from the 1960s until 2008. Background The studio, located at 64 South Molton Street in the Mayfair area of the West End of London, was originally establi ...

(Primrose Hill, London, UK); Swanyard Studios (Islington, London, UK) * Mixed at The Grey Room (Hollywood, California) * Mastered at

Masterdisk Masterdisk is an American multimedia company in New York, located at 8 John Walsh Boulevard in Peekskill. They provide production services such as audio mastering, vinyl cutting and enhanced CD and DVD production. Their clients include such n ...

(New York, New York) Other credits * Bill Burks – art direction * Tommy Steele – art direction * Glenn Sakamoto – design *

Herb Ritts Herbert Ritts Jr. (August 13, 1952 – December 26, 2002) was an American fashion photographer and director known for his photographs of celebrities, models, and other cultural figures throughout the 1980s and 1990s. His work concentrated on b ...

– center photography * Peter Lindbergh – photography

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications and sales

References

{{Authority control Tina Turner albums 1989 albums Albums produced by Rupert Hine Albums produced by Dan Hartman Albums produced by Tony Joe White Capitol Records albums